DC’s Batman Eternal has easily emerged as the stronger of the publisher’s two current weekly series (a third weekly will be arriving in October with Earth 2: World’s End), working to unify the Bat-family while pushing Gotham’s characters in intriguing new directions. With a team of five writers and a solid roster of rotating artists, Batman Eternal is part of group editor Mark Doyle’s ongoing efforts to make significant changes to the world of the Dark Knight, efforts that include the Batgirl revamp in October and new series like Gotham Academy andthe just-announced Gotham By Midnight by Eternal co-writer Ray Fawkes and artist Ben Templesmith.

The majority of the preview for this week’s Batman Eternal #20 is dedicated to a team-up between Batman and Killer Croc, who have partnered with Detective Jason Bard to save an abducted girl from a mystic ritual performed by the Ten-Eyed Man. This leads to an appropriately chaotic fight sequence courtesy of script writer Tim Seeley and the art team of Emanuel Simeoni and colorist Blond, whose work on this series has been considerably more atmospheric and expressive than his colors on Gail Simone’s Batgirl. It’s a strange new world for Batman as he fights beside his foes, but moving in unexpected directions has elevated the quality of this title.